Winter surprises

This little wren was peeking into my window this morning looking as if to say "why don't you come out?".  So that is what I decided to do.  I got my coat on and mushed out to see how things were faring in our garden.

I found that the hellebores were in something of a pout what with the cold and scattering of snow.

The Autumn Fern was in complete agreement with the hellebores about how awful the weather had turned. With the temperatures dipping and the wind blowing. Brrrr

One surprise I found was this bit of Helichruysum thianschanicum that is an annual here.  It has survived when all the rest in the pot long ago sucumbed to the weather.  This licorice plant is aptly named 'Icicles'.  I will think of other places to plant it next spring.  It has held up to the drought in summer and now the cold temps. It will be intersting to see just how long it survives.

Another surprise I found was the Meadow Rue that still shows a bit of green.  It is usually down for the count by this time.

Another little shot of color comes from this Carex. Its yellow stripes are shining in the gloom.

Are there any surprises in your winter garden? I hope you all have a wonderful week.

Ice Shower

Yesterday I looked out and found that our garden had been showered with ice balls. So my trusty mutt, Luna, and I went out to see what things looked like. It was so overcast and dreary. Most everything looked pretty sad.



The log planter was full of ice.

You can see that the largest of the sedums I planted in it was barely peeking out of the ice.

If you would like to see the log planter not long after I planted it you can go here to have a look.

The ice did magnify the object that it encased. My little (18" tall) rock that I call my monolith (use your imagination here) shows its beautiful pattern.
Of course the evergreens were catching the ice balls as it came down.

The poor Autumn fern was loaded with ice. This tough fern has obviously stayed fairly green through out what ever OleMman Winter has cast upon it. It just makes me want to plant more of this beautiful fern.
My poor hellebores are looking worse for the wear. I do hope they can snap out of this set back. I haven't seen any buds on them yet so they may be ok.I just hate to see them beat down like this since they were looking so perky. They have more light now that the pine trees are gone.

The garden bench didn't look very comfortable with a coat of ice but you can see how the pattern around the edge is accentuated.

The little bits of color in the garden seemed more vibrant with a coating of ice. The half piece of bowling ball in the urn seemed lively. As did the red gazing ball. You can really see the ice balls that came down. It made driving trecherous.

I seem to like round objects. A small pink gazing ball. I have several round garden beds too.

And last but not least a red finial on the fence post. I just thought a little color would be nice after an ice bath.

Just seeing some color makes me feel warmer.

I hope everyone has a wonderful weekend. Stay inside and dream thoughts of warm colorful gardens.